Work is being undertaken on the sewers outside the deli and papershop, and also near the Mermaid. The road between The Bank, at the side of the chemists running down to the pub, will be closed.

Police have coned off the parking spaces at The Mermaid to allow larger vehicles traveling to and from the quay to get around the sharp bend.

The sewer, that runs under the main street, the so-called Mermaid Run, has become blocked regularly of late. Council workers have introduced enzymes that digest material into the sewers to try and address this.

Chief technical officer Neville Gardner told councillors recently that the sewage system will be reconfigured so that a fast flowing channel from Church Street joins the Mermaid Run near the papershop. It’s hoped this will help the flow along the narrow pipe under the main street, which falls at a gradient of just 1 in 70.